Grownups

Summer's over, but the books you liked reading then...now have sequels! Find out what your favorite characters are up to now: What kind of trouble is Squish getting into? What mystery will Bethesda solve now that she knows Ms. Finkleman's story? Find out by clicking on the link below.

Can't remember the booktalking books, take a look at the lists again here.

"It snowed right before Jack stopped talking to Hazel, fluffy white flakes big enough to show their crystal architecture, like perfect geometric poems. It was the sort of snow that transforms the world into a different kind of place. You know what it's like - when you wake up to find everything white and soft and quiet, when you run outisde and your breath suddenly appears before you in a smoky poof, when you wonder for a moment if the world in which you woke up is nt the same one that you went to bed in the night before. Things like that happen, at least in the stories you read. It was the sort of snowfall that, if there were any magic to be had in the world, would make it come out. And magic did come out."

Unfortunately, the magic that comes out of that wonderful, marvelous, story book snow is evil magic- in the form of The Snow Queen. She spirits Jack away from Hazel and everyone he knows into a deep, dark forest. And even though Jack has stopped talking to Hazel, she is still his best friend. Best friends save each other, no matter what.

This marvelous, magical retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen is a must-read for anyone who loves a heroic, epic adventure, dazzling fantasy worlds, and a character who's learning what it means to grow up.

As a parent, do you:

• Worry that you are not doing enough?
• Struggle with embarrassing issues?
• Seek ways to reduce power struggles?
• Want to do everything you can to be
an effective and competent parent?

Parents of boys and girls in 3rd and 4th grades are invited to join this monthly Parent Discussion Group held in the Darien Library Conference Room. Using the Raising Our Sons and Raising Our Daughters parenting guides, you will meet monthly with other parents with children of the same age/gender. This program is designed to be a pro-active approach to prepare for the tween and teen years.

Wednesdays, 10 to 11:30 AM

The first session will meet on Wednesday, October 12 at 10 AM in the Library's Conference Room.

Darien Library is a member of Thriving Youth: Connected Community, an initiative of the Human Services Planning Council for developmental asset building through meaningful relationships, experiences, skills and opportunities that benefit all our children. Thriving Youth: Connected Community is a movement in Darien to address the needs of our young people which were brought to light in the Fall when the Search Institute conducted the 40 Developmental Assets survey in our Middle and High Schools. If you missed the results when they were announced you can still view the presentation as a pdf here. Some of the sessions will be facilitated by Moira Rizzo, LMFT.

To see the list of Developmental Assets that will be discussed in this series, click here. To learn more about the Raising Our Sons and Daughters program, visit the Family Empowerment Network's website.

In her new book, Jefferson's Sons, Kimberly Brubaker Bradley does something truly remarkable. She takes a complicated and controversial idea, that Thomas Jefferson had children by his slave Sally Hemmings, and writes about it in a simple, eloquent way that children can understand.

This book is definitely for advanced readers. The themes it tackles are complex and readers need a working knowledge of early US history to understand the world that Beverly, Harriet, Madison, and Eston live in. The story does not shy away from the horrors of slavery - families are broken apart, friends are sold, and slaves who run away are punished when they are caught. However, by presenting the book from the perspectives of children, Bradley is able to convey her story without graphic details.

This book is generating a lot of Newbery buzz for its honesty and the high quality of its storytelling. There is a recomended reading list at the back of the book, and Bradley writes an afterword in which she details how she did her research and where she located most of her information (in primary sources from Monticello.org).

I would recomend that parents read this book themselves if they have a child who would like to check it out, as it is a tale likely to generate a large amount of discussion.

Further reviews can be found here , here, and here. Highly recomended for children 9+.

If you and your children have been enjoying the Early Literacy iPad Kits along with the iPad mounted in the Children's Library, we have great news! We recently revamped our kits to includenewly acquired apps for you and your children to enjoy! We've also organized the apps, old and new, into convenient folders.

As the anniversary draws closer, we will be witness to a flood of media coverage and rememberances. Your children may ask you questions about the events of that day. If you have concerns about handling a family discussion of September 11th, or would like more information about speaking to your children about difficult topics in the media, we invite you to consult the resource list below:

This PDF from the 9/11 Memorial's official website is extremely helpful, particularly the advice to "Answer questions with facts."

9/11 Heroesoffers their own guide, and provides a space for parents to upload their children's poems and pictures commemorating the heros of September 11th.

This link from PBS.org is a great resource for talking to your children about any tragedy or current event.

You may also want to check out some of the Children's Library materials about September 11th:

One Day in History: September 11, 2001

Rodney P. Carlisle

Turning Points in U.S. History: September 11, 2001

Dennis B. Fradin

September 11: Then and Now (A True Book)

Peter Benoit

If you have any additional questions about September 11th materials, feel free to contact the Children's Library at childrenslibrary@darien.org.

The Stamford Advocate has launched a project, Speak Out Against Bullying, to raise awareness about kids and teens who are bullied in school and to help erase the stigma associated with those who have been bullied. Two teens shared their stories in the video below, and The Advocate is encouraging other kids and teens to add their voices and experiences to the conversation. More videos, in addition to articles, will be coming out on this very important topic.

Stories come from all sorts of interesting places. Sometimes we find great stories within the pages of a book at the Library. Other times we may hear a terrific tale from a grandparent or teacher. Sometimes, we create our very own!

The collected anthology below contains real life stories written by the fifth graders at Holmes Elementary who participated in the Writing Workshop. Each writer began by creating a writer's notebook and selecting two original stories as seed ideas. Then they each chose two drafts to revise, edit, and ultimately, publish.

The Darien Library is proud to host these wonderful original works for the entire community to enjoy. Click the page below to open.

Whether you get your news from tv, the web, radio, Twitter, Facebook, or a newspaper, you've likely seen the headlines about the death of Osama Bin Laden. For adults, news like this can bring up a variety of emotions and take a while to fully process. Imagine then, the difficulty that many children have in trying to contextualize and fully absorb current events of this magnitude.

For tips on talking with children about tough issues and somewhat scary current events, check out this article from PBS.org.

Since many young children were born after the events of September 11, 2001, a conversation about the history leading up to this week's news may be in order. The Children's Library offers several child-friendly databases for history, social studies, and biographies. These online resources, while compiled from print sources (and thereby appropriate for most homework assignments), are updated continually and offer the most current information for students.